Happy 2019! I'm looking forward to some great gardening projects and adventures. I'm impatient for warmer, longer, sunnier days; but can also appreciate the much-needed precipitation of our coastal climate's winter.

After the busy holiday season, life has settled down somewhat. I don't have obligations or necessary tasks to complete this weekend, so I'm going to go out in the yard (in between rainshowers) and observe my plants more closely than in the past few weeks. I haven't managed to do much recently, other than pick dandelions or mushrooms out of the lawn, or pour excess water from plant containers that don't drain well. My first goal is to see which plants have expired or gone dormant in this cold weather, those pots that are empty except for dead leaves and stems. I'll store them in out-of-the-way areas. Then I'll move plants with blooms and lush foliage to the most visible spots around the front of the house, while removing any brown or damaged bits... seems like enough work for now!

One way I've been indulging my gardening passion while spending most hours indoors is with the start of a new online project: #FlowerOfTheDay posts on Instagram and Twitter. I select from all the photos I've taken for this blog since I began writing it in May 2015. Then I find a link to something interesting about the flower in the picture (like growing easy-care petunias, or a poem that mentions camellias) and include that, along with a few words (my experience growing those blooms, fun facts I've learned, or what cooking I use that flowering herb in). While I hope to manage a post every day this year, it might end up being more like 6 days a week, when I get busy with spring planting and other outdoor projects.

Another current pursuit is reviewing the previous year's blog entries and remembering what I did, while considering which efforts to repeat in 2019. So far I know that I'll plant tomatoes, peas and radishes again, and continue experimenting with lilies, begonias and dahlias. As I gain experience and wisdom every growing season, by trying various growing strategies and doing a lot of reading, I achieve greater success with many plants. But perhaps it's time to “branch out” into something rather unknown, such as fruit shrubs, or rarer flowers. I think my hesitation (to try and perhaps be disappointed) with cultivating new varieties is far outweighed by curiosity!